Walkative 2.0 - Cloud-Based Booking Platform for Free Walking Tours

Walkative 2.0 is a cloud-based booking platform dedicated to the tourism industry, specifically designed for free walking tour reservations. The platform automates and facilitates the entire reservation process, handling thousands of weekly bookings across multiple European cities.

Walkative was founded in 2007 in Krakow by a group of passionate guides. Today, it operates and helps guide tourists throughout Europe and beyond, offering free walking tours in dozens of cities. To handle the many thousands of weekly reservations, a booking platform was required that would automate and simplify the entire reservation process.

About Walkative

Walkative was founded in 2007 in Krakow by a group of passionate guides. Today, it operates and helps guide tourists throughout Europe and beyond, offering free walking tours in dozens of cities. The platform serves as the central hub for managing tours, guides, partners, and reservations across multiple locations.

Technologies Used

Backend API - RESTful API architecture
Mobile App Development - iOS and Android applications
Payment Integration - Stripe payment processing
OTA Integrations - API synchronization with TripAdvisor, Viator, GetYourGuide, GuruWalk, Civitatis, FreeTour
CMS - Content management system
Widget Technology - Direct Booking Widget (HTML/JavaScript)

Services & Deliverables

Platform Development
Backend API Development
Mobile App Development (iOS & Android)
Direct Booking Widget
OTA Integration Engine
Payment System Integration
CMS Implementation
Partner Dashboard
Admin Panel
Staff Training

Challenge

Walkative needed a comprehensive booking platform to handle thousands of weekly reservations across multiple cities. The platform had to:

Automate the entire reservation process for free walking tours
Support multiple user roles: Tourists, Guides, Partners, Managers, and Administrators
Enable partner companies to manage their own tours and reservations
Integrate with major OTA platforms (TripAdvisor, Viator, GetYourGuide, etc.) to prevent overbooking
Provide a mobile application for guides to manage their tours on the go
Offer a Direct Booking Widget that could be embedded on partner websites
Handle complex availability management with backup guide functionality
Support affiliate tracking and commission management

The main challenge was creating a scalable system that could handle the growing number of reservations while maintaining synchronization across multiple booking channels to prevent overbooking.

Solution

We developed Walkative 2.0 as a comprehensive cloud-based platform with the following key components:

Booking Module

The booking module enables tourists to easily reserve tours with minimal steps. It includes:

Simple data entry (name, email, phone, number of participants)
Automatic email confirmations with cancellation links
Virtual shopping cart for managing reservations
Departure Board (Tablica Odlotów) showing all available tours in a city
Support for up to 7 participants per reservation
Separate counting for adults and children

Availability Module

Centralized management of tour and guide availability:

Time slot creation for tours
Guide assignment based on availability
Automatic backup guide notifications when bookings reach 70% capacity
Dynamic limit adjustments
Calendar view filtered by city

Partners Module

Enables selected tourism companies to access key system functions:

Manage their own tours and reservations
Control guide availability
Access to partner dashboard
Limited permissions tailored to partner needs

Direct Booking Widget

A customizable widget that can be embedded on any website:

Simple HTML/JavaScript integration
Mobile-responsive design
Calendar-based booking interface
Automatic data collection for Google Ads enhanced conversions
Support for multiple cities, partners, and tours

Mobile App - Walkative Guide

Dedicated mobile application for guides with modules:

My Tours - View assigned tours and manage participants
My Data - Update personal information and bio
Settlement - Access to settlement files
Backup functionality - Add second guide when needed
Tip tracking - Record collected tips
Attendance confirmation - Mark tourist attendance at meeting points

OTA Integration Engine

Prepared architecture for synchronizing with major OTA platforms:

TripAdvisor
Viator
GetYourGuide
GuruWalk
Civitatis
FreeTour

The integration engine prevents overbooking by synchronizing availability across all channels.

Payment Module

Integrated with Stripe for secure payment processing:

Credit and debit card payments
Digital wallets
Payment links in post-tour emails
Online tipping for guides

Notification Module

Automated communication system:

Email confirmations with guide photos and bios
Reminder emails (12 hours before tour)
SMS reminders for guides
Push notifications to mobile app
Overbooking alerts

The Work

The platform was built to handle the complex requirements of managing free walking tours across multiple cities. Key features include:

Multi-role System: Different access levels for Tourists, Guides, Partners, Managers, and Administrators
CMS Module: Content management for tours, categories, FAQ, and text pages
Comment & Rating Module: Post-tour feedback system similar to GuruWalk
Affiliate Module: Link generation, promotional codes, and QR codes for commission tracking
Authentication: Support for Facebook, Google, Apple, and email/password login
Admin Panel: Comprehensive dashboard with calendar, user management, widgets, reservations, products, reports, and settings

The system was designed to scale from handling thousands of monthly visitors to over a million, with support for hundreds of partners and tens of thousands of tours.

Outcome

Walkative 2.0 provides a robust, scalable platform that:

Automates the entire reservation process, reducing manual work
Prevents overbooking through OTA synchronization
Enables partners to manage their own tours independently
Provides guides with mobile tools for tour management
Offers flexible booking options through the Direct Booking Widget
Maintains data security and GDPR compliance
Supports affiliate marketing and commission tracking

The platform successfully handles thousands of weekly reservations and continues to scale as Walkative expands to new cities and partners.

Project Details

Project Time: 12+ months
Scale:
- 1M+ monthly website visitors (12 months)